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Old Testament — Topic 6

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Old Testament — Topic 6

The five books of Moses (ἡ Πεντάτευχος sc., Βίβλος, Pentateuchus sc., liber , the book in five parts) are called in the Old Testament Sepher hattorah, the Law-book (Deut. 31:26; Josh. 1:8, etc.), or, more concisely still, Hattorah, ὁ νόμος, the Law (Neh. 8:2, 7, 13, etc.), —a name descriptive both of the contents of the work and of its importance in relation to the economy of the Old Covenant. The word תֹּורָה Torah – demonstrare, docere, denotes instruction. The Torah is the book of instruction, which Jehovah gave through Moses to the people of Israel, and is therefore called Torah Yahweh (2 Chron. 17:9; 34:14; Neh. 9:3) and Torah Mosheh (Josh. 8:31; 2 Kings 14:6; Neh. 8:1), or Sepher Mosheh, the book of Moses (2 Chron. 25:4; 35:12; Ezra 6:18; Neh. 13:1). Its contents are a divine revelation in words and deeds, or rather the fundamental revelation, through which Yahweh selected Israel to be His people, and gave to them their rule of life (νομός), or theocratical constitution as a people and kingdom.

The five books of Moses occupy the first place in the canon of the Old Testament, not merely on account of their peculiar character as the foundation and norm of all the rest, but also because of their actual date, as being the oldest writings in the canon, and the groundwork of the whole of the Old Testament literature; all the historical, prophetic, and poetical works of the Israelites subsequent to the Mosaic era pointing back to the law of Moses as their primary source and type, and assuming the existence not merely of the law itself, but also of a book of the law.

Five divine names in Hebrew are used in the Book of Genesis: yahweh, ’elohim, ’el, shaddai , and ’adonai. In addition to these names the compound names include yahweh ’elohim, ’el shaddai , and ’adonai yahweh.

A further group of divine names is formed by adding a place name or other descriptive word to form a compound name: ’el beth’el “The God of Bethel,” ’el ‘elyon “God Most High,” ’el ‘olam “Everlasting God.”

In other examples the name of a person is associated with the divine name or its substitute to form a relational expression: “God of my father,” “God of Nahor,” “The Fear of Isaac,” “The Mighty One of Jacob,” “The Rock of Israel,” and “The Shield of Abraham.”

Finally, the divine name may be substituted by a term expressing an activity or occupation: ’el ro’i “God of Seeing” and roèh “The Shepherd.”

Translators should consult a Bible dictionary for the meanings attached to these names of God. The purpose of the discussion here is to examine briefly each of these names and to suggest ways in which they may be translated. Further suggestions for translation will be found in the appropriate verses in the Handbook.

1) Yahweh is the approximate pronunciation of the four Hebrew letters yhwh. This represents the personal name of the God of the Hebrews. Later this name was written with the vowels of ’adonai “lord” and pronounced “adonai” to avoid speaking the personal name of the deity. The Septuagint and Latin translators rendered it by the word for “lord,” and most English translations have followed this tradition and write it “Lord,” except for the Jerusalem Bible (JB) and the New Jerusalem Bible (NJB), which render the name as “Yahweh.”

2) ’Elohim, the plural form of ’eloah , is the most commonly used of the general words for God in the Old Testament. Although it is grammatically a plural formation, it functions as both a singular and a plural general name for “god.” It most often refers to the God of Israel, but it can be used in the plural to refer to the “gods” of the other nations.

3) ’El was the common term to designate the deity in ancient Middle Eastern cultures. It was used as a general term that could include many divine beings. ’El was “the god” or “God.” As the Hebrews took over Canaanite religious shrines, they associated the name ’el and the accompanying religious beliefs with the name of the Hebrew God yahweh.

4) Shaddai, or more exactly ’el shaddai , is the name given in Exo 6:3 by which God made himself known to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Scholars have not been able to prove what the name means. The English translation “Almighty” follows the Septuagint and the Vulgate usage.

5) ’Adonai , or ’adon , was commonly used by the Canaanites and Israelites but was not found among people speaking other semitic languages. The sense of the word is “master,” “owner,” “chief,” “lord,” and it is used in the same sense as the Canaanite term bàal. ’Adon is used as a title of respect for a ruler or person of authority. In 15:2 and 8 ’adonai yahweh is used as a title in addressing God. In 19:2 and 18 Lot addresses the angels at Sodom with the term ’adonai.

Names or titles for God in most languages tend to be general terms, personal names, or combinations of both. The names that are associated with the exploits of a local deity are the most troublesome, because too often these names suggest attitudes and behavior that are contradictory to a biblical understanding of God. On the other hand, some words or titles refer to general attributes such as power, greatness, highness, authority, creativity, care, protection, and sustaining. Names associated with such qualities are usually acknowledged as more appropriate. Even so, a personal name with questionable attributes can often over a period of time become accepted, and it is usually better than a borrowed word that may have little meaning and sometimes has unfortunate foreign associations.

How to translate adequately and faithfully the words referring to God is a problem for all translators. In some cases the problems have remained long after the translation has been completed.

Translators may find it helpful to consider the problems related to the translation of the general words for God separately from the problems related to the translation of the Hebrew personal name of God written yhwh.

We may, for example, translate each of the Hebrew words referring to God by a different term. However, this is not often a practical solution, because most languages do not have a large number of words that are equally generic in their meanings. Furthermore, the impression may be given that each word, name, or title refers to a different deity.

A common practice is to translate all these general words for God by the most general word for God in the language. In languages influenced by Islam this may be some form of “Allah.”

In some cases the local word for God is unsuitable for use because of its associations with local cultural practices. For example, the name may represent one of a pair of gods or one of a group of gods; and what is said about the one applies also to the others. In other cases the local god’s name refers to one whose behavior is unsuitable to represent the God of the Bible. Nevertheless translators have often found that an inappropriate local name for a god can and does become identified eventually with the God of Scripture. It is therefore difficult to make hard and fast rules.

Another solution, particularly in languages that may have no name for God, is to adopt an honorific title that describes a major feature of God; for example, “The Creator,” “The Heavenly Ruler,” or “The Supreme One.”

The translation suggestions for the descriptive and relational expressions are dealt with where these occur in the body of the Handbook.

The translation of the divine name yahweh poses a somewhat different set of problems. It is important to recognize that the Hebrew yhwh represents the name of the God of the Israelites. The Hebrew Bible does not use such expressions as “the yhwh ,” “ yhwh of Israel,” or “our yhwh.” This limitation confirms that yhwh is used as a personal name for God. It is the most frequently used term for God in the Old Testament. Although it is a name whose explanation is given in Exod. 3:13–14, scholars differ in their interpretation of the meaning. Besides this, to translate yhwh as “I am who I am” is difficult and may not sound at all like a name. Furthermore, in very few of the occurrences of this name in the Old Testament is the name as such the subject of discussion. However, see the comments on 4:26. Normally this name is a reference to God just as is the term ’elohim and other names.

Translators and particularly revisers of earlier versions are frequently faced with what to do with the name “Jehovah.” This name is based on a misinformed belief that the Jews pronounced the consonants of yhwh together with the vowels of ’adonai “Lord.” What they actually pronounced was the word ’adonai. Accordingly the Handbook does not encourage translators to use “Jehovah.” At the same time it recognizes that this name has often become somewhat sacred, and that translators and revisers are sometimes under great pressure from churches to retain it.

To translate the name of Israel’s God, there are several options open to the translator.

(1) Transliterate. In this case the sacred name is written according to the writing system of the translator’s language in a form that represents the sounds of the word yahweh , which is the approximate pronunciation of yhwh. Of course if the transliteration already has another meaning, it cannot be used, or the name must be transliterated in a different manner. Since Jews do not pronounce the name, and if they are a significant number of readers, they should be consulted before deciding to transliterate yhwh.

(2) Translate with a term equivalent to “Lord.” This is a practice begun by the translators of the Septuagint, who translated yhwh by the Greek word kyrios “Lord.” An equivalent term may be something equivalent to “Master,” “Owner,” “Ruler,” or “One who commands.”

(3) Translate the meaning of yhwh. It is sometimes possible to translate the sacred name by a term or expression that suggests one of the meanings usually assigned to yhwh , such as “the Ever-Present One” or “the Eternal One.”

(4) Use the name of a local god. If the local god has a personal name, it is sometimes possible to use that name to represent yhwh. As was pointed out earlier, this does not always depend on the local god being in conformity to the God of the Bible. If the language of translation has both a personal name and an honorific or descriptive title, it may be possible to use the personal name for yhwh and the other term to translate the general words for God.

(5) Translate both yhwh and the general words for God by the same term. If none of the other suggestions seems advisable, and there is not an established practice to overcome, it may be best to use a single term or expression for yhwh and all the other terms that refer to God. An exception to this may be if the translator wishes to reserve a special name to translate yhwh in those passages in which attention is drawn to the name of God.

  • 6.1 TITLE, CONTENTS, AND PLAN OF THE BOOKS OF MOSES
  • 6.2 The names of God in Pentateuch

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